Adjusted Operating Earnings(1)(2) decreased 76.2% to $7.6 million compared to $31.7 million last year

Net loss(2) increased to $14.7 million from a loss of $5.8 million last year

Adjusted Earnings per Share(2)(3) decreased to a loss of $0.06 per share from Adjusted Earnings per Share
of $0.06 last year

"This was a very difficult quarter, with lower earnings in our Protein
business overshadowing good improvement in our Bakery results," said
Michael H. McCain, President and CEO. "For some time, we expected a
volatile first half to 2013, but this certainly has been more severe
than anticipated. Our meat business has demonstrated multiple years of
progressive and steady improvement, but this quarter experienced the
aggregate impact of poor market conditions, weaker volumes in the wake
of necessary price advances and transition costs related to our new
network. While challenging in the near term, we expect steady
improvements through the remainder of the year as a result of improved
markets, restoring stable volumes and continued success in our supply
chain conversions. Our strategic initiatives, which are the most
material contributor to our margin expansion, are on track and
contributing to results."

(1)

Adjusted Operating Earnings, a non-IFRS measure, is used by Management
to evaluate financial operating results. It is defined as earnings
before income taxes adjusted for items that are not considered
representative of on-going operational activities of the business, and
items where the economic impact of the transactions will be reflected
in earnings in future periods when the underlying asset is sold or
transferred. Please refer to the section entitled Reconciliation of
Non-IFRS Financial Measures at the end of this news release.

(2)

2012 figures have been restated for the impact of adopting the revised
International Accounting Standard 19 Employee Benefits ("IAS 19"), as
disclosed in Note 24 of the Company's 2013 first quarter unaudited
condensed consolidated interim financial statements.

(3)

Adjusted Earnings per Share, a non-IFRS measure, is used by Management
to evaluate on-going financial operating results. It is defined as
basic earnings per share attributable to common shareholders, and is
adjusted for all items that are not considered representative of
on-going operational activities of the business, and items where the
economic impact of the transactions will be reflected in earnings in
future periods when the underlying asset is sold or transferred. Please
refer to the section entitled Reconciliation of Non-IFRS Financial
Measures at the end of this news release.

Financial Overview

Sales of $1,112.8 million were 4.1% lower than last year, or 2.3% after
adjusting for the impacts of divestitures and foreign exchange, as
lower volumes were partly offset by higher pricing.

Adjusted Operating Earnings for the first quarter were $7.6 million
compared to $31.7 million last year, primarily due to lower earnings in
the Protein Group as market pricing and foreign exchange impacted
primary pork processing and hog production earnings.

Net loss increased to $14.7 million ($0.11 basic loss per share)
compared to a loss of $5.8 million ($0.04 basic loss per share) last
year. The net loss included $47.4 million ($0.25 per share) of pre-tax
expenses related to restructuring and other related costs (2012: $20.4
million, or $0.11 per share). The increase in restructuring expenses
resulted from the advanced level of planning and execution of the
Company's transformation plans, which required Management to record
employee related restructuring costs. Adjusted Earnings per Share
declined by $0.12 to a loss of $0.06 from Adjusted Earnings per Share
of $0.06 last year.

Several items are excluded from the discussions of underlying earnings
performance as they are not representative of on-going operational
activities. Refer to the section entitled Reconciliation of Non-IFRS
Financial Measures in this news release.

Business Segment Review

Following is a summary of sales by business segment:

(Unaudited)

First Quarter

($ thousands)

2013

2012

Meat Products Group

$676,957

$725,535

Agribusiness Group

67,450

65,298

Protein Group

$744,407

$790,833

Bakery Products Group

368,426

369,990

Sales

$1,112,833

$1,160,823

Following is a summary of Adjusted Operating Earnings by business
segment:

(Unaudited)

First Quarter

($ thousands)

2013

2012(1)

Meat Products Group

($10,452)

$15,129

Agribusiness Group

5,380

18,154

Protein Group

($5,072)

$33,283

Bakery Products Group

14,124

2,359

Non-allocated Costs in Adjusted Operating Earnings(2)

(1,498)

(3,911)

Adjusted Operating Earnings

$7,554

$31,731

(1)

2012 Adjusted Operating Earnings have been restated for the impact of
adopting the revised International Accounting Standard 19 Employee
Benefits ("IAS 19"), as disclosed in Note 24 of the Company's 2013
first quarter unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial
statements

(2)

Non-allocated costs comprise expenses not separately identifiable to
business segment groups, and do not form part of the measures used by
the Company when assessing the segments' operating results.

Protein Group
Results for the Company's Meat Products and Agribusiness Groups should
be viewed in combination due to intercompany transactions and
correlated factors within these operations.

Sales for the Protein Group, which includes the Company's Meat Products
and Agribusiness Groups, declined 5.9% to $744.4 million in the first
quarter of 2013 from $790.8 million last year. The decline was
primarily driven by lower volumes and the divestiture of the Company's
potato processing business, partly offset by higher pricing. Adjusted
Operating Earnings declined to a loss of $5.1 million compared to
Adjusted Operating Earnings of $33.3 million last year. The most
significant factor was a $24 million impact from market conditions
resulting from the record drought in the U.S. Midwest in 2012 and the
devaluation of the Japanese Yen, which mostly impacted primary
processing and hog production earnings. Other factors in the quarter
included a $10 million impact related to lower volumes, primarily in
prepared meats, principally as a reaction to price increases required
to offset higher raw material costs, and an increase of $7 million in
transitional costs related to the execution of strategic initiatives.
Partially offsetting these factors was $9 million of cost reduction
benefits from strategic value creation initiatives in the prepared
meats business. Further detail on the Meat Products Group and
Agribusiness Group are provided below.

Meat Products GroupIncludes value-added prepared meats, lunch kits; and fresh pork, poultry
and turkey products sold to retail, foodservice, industrial and
convenience channels. Includes leading Canadian brands such as Maple
Leaf ®, Schneiders ® and many leading sub-brands.

Meat Products Group sales for the first quarter declined 6.7% to $677.0
million, or 4.3% after adjusting for the impact of divesting the
Company's potato processing business and a stronger Canadian dollar.
Sales were lower as a result of lower volumes in the fresh pork and
prepared meats businesses, partly offset by price increases in prepared
meats and higher market pricing for pork and poultry products.

Adjusted Operating Earnings for the first quarter declined to a loss of
$10.5 million compared to earnings of $15.1 million last year. As
expected, last year's record drought in the U.S. Midwest caused a
significant rise in grain and meat costs. The Company experienced an 8%
decline in prepared meats volumes in the wake of price increases
required to offset these higher input costs. Earnings were also
impacted by additional transitional costs associated with executing the
Company's network transformation project, principally duplicative
overhead and start-up costs. In the quarter, these transitional costs
were more than offset by earnings accretion from network transformation
and simplification initiatives completed last year that, along with
innovation and a higher value sales mix, expanded margins in the
quarter. The sale of the Company's potato processing business in the
quarter reduced Adjusted Operating Earnings by approximately $3 million
compared to last year.

Earnings in primary pork processing were primarily impacted by a rapid
devaluation of the Japanese Yen that reduced margins on pork exports,
lower contributions from hedging programs, and lower returns from
by-product sales. Industry processing margins continued to be negative
during the quarter, although improved compared to last year. Earnings
in the poultry business were affected by lower industry processing
margins, partly offset by higher pricing in value-added channels.

Agribusiness GroupConsists of Canadian hog production and animal by-product recycling
operations, including biodiesel manufacturing and distribution.

Sales in the Agribusiness Group increased 3.3% to $67.5 million for the
first quarter compared to $65.3 million last year due to higher pricing
and volumes in the by-products recycling business.

Adjusted Operating Earnings in the first quarter declined 70.4% to $5.4
million compared to $18.2 million last year, entirely driven by hog
production earnings that were impacted by a combination of higher feed
costs, lower market prices for hogs, and lower contribution from
hedging activities. Earnings in the by-products recycling operations
were consistent with last year, as increased raw material costs were
offset by higher selling prices and biodiesel volumes.

Bakery Products GroupIncludes fresh and frozen bakery products, including breads, rolls,
bagels, specialty and artisan breads, sweet goods, and fresh pasta and
sauces sold to retail, foodservice and convenience channels. It
includes national brands such as Dempster's®, Tenderflake®, Olivieri®
and New York Bakery CoTM, and many leading regional brands.

Bakery Products Group sales for the first quarter decreased 0.4% to
$368.4 million, but increased by 0.6% after adjusting for the closure
of a bakery in the U.K. and currency translation on sales in the U.S.
and U.K. This increase in sales was mostly due to price increases
implemented during the quarter in the fresh and North American frozen
bakery businesses and higher croissant volumes in the U.K., partly
offset by lower volumes in the fresh bakery business.

Adjusted Operating Earnings increased to $14.1 million compared to $2.4
million last year, due in large part to improved performance in the
fresh bakery business. Results from the frozen and fresh pasta
businesses also increased while earnings from the U.K. operations were
consistent with last year.

The substantial earnings increase in the fresh bakery business was
mostly the result of improved operating efficiencies, contribution from
the new Hamilton, Ontario bakery and non-recurrence of SAP start up
costs incurred last year. Also benefiting earnings were price increases
and lower advertising & promotional costs. During the quarter,
approximately $3 million of duplicative overhead costs were incurred
pending the closure of a third Toronto bakery. These costs, expected to
be approximately $5 million in total for the first half of the year,
will be eliminated in early June when the bakery is closed and
production transferred to the Company's recently constructed Hamilton,
Ontario bakery.

Higher margins in the North American frozen bakery business were largely
due to price increases implemented during the quarter, while increased
earnings in the fresh pasta business resulted from an inventory
write-off in the first quarter of last year that did not re-occur.
Although the U.K. bakery business benefited from higher volumes and the
closure of the Walsall facility last year, increased marketing spending
during the quarter to support continued growth of the New York Bakery brand offset these improvements.

Long-Term EBITDA(1) Margin Targets

When the Company's value creation plan was announced in 2010, Management
projected that improvements resulting from the plan would achieve an
estimated Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortization
("EBITDA") margin of 12.5% in 2015. As a result of the subsequent
adoption of International Accounting Standard 19 Employee Benefits (IAS
19), effective January 1, 2013, the Company retrospectively recorded an
adjustment to non-cash pension expense of $35.2 million in 2012 related
to its defined benefit pension plans, which is included in the
calculation of EBITDA. As this change in accounting for pensions was
not contemplated at the time, and was not included in Management's
estimate of future margins, the Company has adjusted its 2015 EBITDA
margin target to 11.7%, which reflects a revised EBITDA margin target
of 11.4% for the Protein Group and 12.3% for the Bakery Products Group.

The impact of adopting revised IAS 19 is fully described in Note 24 of
the Company's 2013 first quarter unaudited condensed consolidated
interim financial statements.

(1)EBITDA is calculated as earnings from operations and before interest and
income taxes plus depreciation and intangible asset amortization,
adjusted for items that are not considered representative of on-going
operational activities of the business, and items where the economic
impact of the transactions will be reflected in earnings in future
periods when the underlying asset is sold or transferred.

Subsequent Events

On April 4, 2013, the Company entered into an agreement to sell a
bakery, producing specialty products, located in London, U.K.

On April 16, 2013, the Company announced plans to close a bakery in
Shawinigan, Quebec on May 3, 2013. The Company will incur approximately
$3.1 million before taxes in restructuring costs, including
approximately $1.6 million of cash costs.

Other Matters

On May 1, 2013, Maple Leaf Foods declared a dividend of $0.04 per share
payable June 28, 2013 to shareholders of record at the close of
business on June 7, 2013. Unless indicated otherwise by the Company in
writing on or before the time the dividend is paid, the dividend will
be considered an Eligible Dividend for the purposes of the "Enhanced
Dividend Tax Credit System".

An investor presentation related to the Company's first quarter
financial results is available at www.mapleleaffoods.com and can be found under Investor Relations on the Quarterly Results
page. A conference call will be held at 2:30 p.m. EDT on May 2, 2013 to
review Maple Leaf Foods' first quarter financial results. To
participate in the call, please dial 416-340-8061 or 866-225-0198. For
those unable to participate, playback will be made available an hour
after the event at 905-694-9451 / 800-408-3053 (Passcode 3231342).

The Company's full financial statements and related Management's
Discussion and Analysis are available for download on the Company's
website.

Reconciliation of Non-IFRS Financial Measures

The Company uses the following non-IFRS measures: Adjusted Operating
Earnings and Adjusted Earnings per Share. Management believes that
these non-IFRS measures provide useful information to both Management
and investors in measuring the financial performance of the Company for
the reasons outlined below. These measures do not have a standardized
meaning prescribed by IFRS, and therefore they may not be comparable to
similarly titled measures presented by other publicly traded companies
and should not be construed as an alternative to other financial
measures determined in accordance with IFRS.

Adjusted Operating Earnings

Adjusted Operating Earnings, a non-IFRS measure, is used by Management
to evaluate financial operating results. It is defined as earnings
before income taxes adjusted for items that are not considered
representative of on-going operational activities of the business, and
items where the economic impact of the transactions will be reflected
in earnings in future periods when the underlying asset is sold or
transferred. The table below provides a reconciliation of net earnings
as reported under IFRS in the unaudited condensed consolidated interim
statements of earnings for the three month periods as indicated below
to Adjusted Operating Earnings. Management believes that this basis is
the most appropriate on which to evaluate operating results, as they
are representative of the on-going operations of the Company.

Three months ended March 31, 2013

Meat

Bakery

(Unaudited)

Products

Agribusiness

Products

Unallocated

($ thousands)

Group

Group

Group

costs

Consolidated

Net loss

$

(14,742)

Income taxes

(10,463)

Earnings from operations before income taxes

$

(25,205)

Interest expense

16,500

Change in the fair value of non-designated

interest rate swaps

(617)

Other (income) expense

(43,394)

862

2,514

(793)

(40,811)

Restructuring and other related costs

35,213

-

10,411

1,745

47,369

Earnings from Operations

$

(10,452)

$

5,380

$

14,124

$

(11,816)

$

(2,764)

Decrease in fair value of biological assets

-

-

-

5,277

5,277

Unrealized losses on commodity futures contracts

-

-

-

5,041

5,041

Adjusted Operating Earnings

$

(10,452)

$

5,380

$

14,124

$

(1,498)

$

7,554

Three months ended March 31, 2012(1)

Meat

Bakery

(Unaudited)

Products

Agribusiness

Products

Unallocated

($ thousands)

Group

Group

Group

costs

Consolidated

Net loss

$

(5,775)

Income taxes

(169)

Earnings from operations before income taxes

$

(5,944)

Interest expense

17,643

Change in the fair value of non-designated

interest rate swaps

(5,153)

Other (income) expense

92

(90)

(22)

135

115

Restructuring and other related costs

14,472

-

5,884

-

20,356

Earnings from Operations

$

15,129

$

18,154

$

2,359

$

(8,625)

$

27,017

Increase in fair value of biological assets

-

-

-

(2,132)

(2,132)

Unrealized losses on commodity futures contracts

-

-

-

6,846

6,846

Adjusted Operating Earnings

$

15,129

$

18,154

$

2,359

$

(3,911)

$

31,731

(1)

2012 Net loss and Adjusted Operating Earnings have been restated for the
impact of adopting the revised International Accounting Standard 19
Employee Benefits ("IAS 19"), as disclosed in Note 24 of the Company's
2013 first quarter unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial
statements

Adjusted Earnings per Share

Adjusted Earnings per Share, a non-IFRS measure, is used by Management
to evaluate on-going financial operating results. It is defined as
basic earnings per share attributable to common shareholders, and is
adjusted for items that are not considered representative of on-going
operational activities of the business, and items where the economic
impact of the transactions will be reflected in earnings in future
periods when the underlying asset is sold or transferred. The table
below provides a reconciliation of basic earnings per share as reported
under IFRS in the unaudited condensed consolidated interim statements
of earnings for the three month periods as indicated below to Adjusted
Earnings per Share. Management believes this basis is the most
appropriate on which to evaluate financial results as they are
representative of the on-going operations of the Company.

Three months ended

(Unaudited)

March 31,

($ per share)

2013

2012(5)

Basic loss per share

$

(0.11)

$

(0.04)

Restructuring and other related costs(1)

0.25

0.11

Items not considered representative of on-going operations(2)

(0.25)

-

Change in the fair value of non-designated interest rate swaps(3)

(0.01)

(0.03)

Change in the fair value of unrealized (gains) losses on commodity

futures contracts(3)

0.03

0.03

Change in the fair value of biological assets(3)

0.03

(0.01)

Adjusted Earnings per Share(4)

$

(0.06)

$

0.06

(1)

Includes per share impact of restructuring and other related costs, net
of tax and non-controlling interest.

(2)

Includes gains/losses associated with non-operational activities,
including gains/losses related to restructuring activities, business
combinations, discontinued operations, and assets held for sale, all
net of tax.

(3)

Includes per share impact of the change in fair value of non-designated
interest rate swaps, hedge ineffectiveness recognized in earnings,
unrealized (gains) losses on commodity futures contracts and the change
in fair value of biological assets, net of tax.

(4)

May not add due to rounding.

(5)

2012 basic loss and Adjusted Earnings per Share have been restated for
the impact of adopting the revised International Accounting Standard 19
Employee Benefits ("IAS 19"), as disclosed in Note 24 of the Company's
2013 first quarter unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial
statements.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains, and the Company's oral and written public
communications often contain, "forward-looking information" within the
meaning of applicable securities law. These statements are based on
current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the
industries in which the Company operates and beliefs and assumptions
made by the Management of the Company. Such statements include, but are
not limited to, statements with respect to objectives and goals, as
well as statements with respect to beliefs, plans, objectives,
expectations, anticipations, estimates and intentions. Specific
forward-looking information in this document includes, but is not
limited to, statements with respect to the anticipated benefits,
timing, actions, costs and investments associated with the Company's
Value Creation Plan, expectations regarding Net Debt to EBITDA ratios
during the implementation of the Plan, expectations regarding the use
of derivatives, futures and options, expectations regarding improving
efficiencies, the expected use of cash balances, source of funds for
ongoing business requirements including renewal of existing
securitization facilities, capital investments and debt repayment,
expectations regarding acquisitions and divestitures, the timing of new
plant openings and old plant closures, job losses and LEED®
certification, expectations regarding the impact of new accounting
standards, expectations regarding sufficiency of the allowance for
uncollectible accounts and expectations regarding pension plan
performance and future pension plan liabilities and contributions.
Words such as "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "attempt", "may",
"will", "plan", "believe", "seek", "estimate", and variations of such
words and similar expressions are intended to identify such
forward-looking information. These statements are not guarantees of
future performance and involve assumptions and risks and uncertainties
that are difficult to predict.

In addition, these statements and expectations concerning the
performance of the Company's business in general are based on a number
of factors and assumptions including, but not limited to: the condition
of the Canadian, U.S., U.K. and Japanese economies; the rate of
exchange of the Canadian dollar to the U.S. dollar, U.K. British pound
and the Japanese yen; the availability and prices of raw materials,
energy and supplies; product pricing; the availability of insurance;
the competitive environment and related market conditions; improvement
of operating efficiencies whether as a result of the Value Creation
Plan or otherwise; continued access to capital; the cost of compliance
with environmental and health standards; no adverse results from
ongoing litigation; no unexpected actions of domestic and foreign
governments; and the general assumption that none of the risks
identified below or elsewhere in this document will materialize. All
of these assumptions have been derived from information currently
available to the Company including information obtained by the Company
from third-party sources. These assumptions may prove to be incorrect
in whole or in part. In addition, actual results may differ materially
from those expressed, implied or forecasted in such forward-looking
information, which reflect the Company's expectations only as of the
date hereof.

Factors that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially
from the results expressed, implied or forecasted by forward-looking
information is discussed more fully in the Company's Annual
Management's Discussion and Analysis for the period ended December 31,
2012 including the section entitled "Risk Factors" that is available on
SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The Company does not intend to, and the Company disclaims any
obligation to, update any forward-looking information, whether written
or oral, or whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise except as required by law.

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. ("Maple Leaf" or the "Company") is a leading
Canadian value-added meat, meals and bakery company committed to
delivering quality food products to consumers around the world.
Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, the Company employs approximately
20,000 people at its operations across Canada and in the United States,
Europe and Asia.